Tack-feeding mechanism for button-setting machines.



F. E. WARNER & W. T. LEGGETT. TACK FEEDING MECHANISM FOR BUTTON SET'HNGMACHINES. APPLICATION FILED OCT-19.1916.

1,229, l 73 Patented June 5, 1917.

rinrrnn snares PATENT @EEEQE.

FRANK IE. \IVARNER AND WILLIAM T. LEGGEIT, OF WATEBBURY,

CONNECTICUT,

ASSIGNORS TO SCOVILL MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF NATERBURY, CON- NECTICUT,A CORPORATION OF CGNNECTICUT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 5, 1917.

Application filed October 19, 1916. Serial No. 126,565.

b all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, FRANK E. TVARNER and l/VILLIAM T. Lneenrr, citizensof the United States, residing at Waterbury, in the county of New Havenand State of Connecticut, have invented a certain new and usefulImprovement in Tack-Feeding Mechanism for Button Setting Machines, ofwhich the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to a power machine for setting tack-fastenedbuttons on garments and other articles rapidly and accurately, and moreparticularly to means for presenting and positioning the tack forsetting the button, and it is in the nature of an improvement on theinvention forming the subject of Patent No. 1,183,824, granted May 16,1916, to the Scovill llianufacturing Company, assignee of Frederick E.Stanley and George R. Leggett.

The object of the invention is to dispense with the cut-off orescapement that is ap plied to the chute or race-way which conducts thetacks from the hopper to the point where they are presented one by oneto the mechanism for positioning them to the means for connecting themwith the buttons, and to substitute for such cut-off or escapement anautomatic arrangement which will positively take the tacks one by onefrom the chute or raceway and transfer them to the positioningmechanism, such as the feed trough of the patent referred to, where theyare acted upon by the ejector of that patent, at the same time lookingthe escape from the chute or raceway of the other tacks therein untilthe tack first liberated and placed in the feed-trough has beenpositioned and set.

The invention consists of a checking-lever arranged adjacent to thedischarge end of the tack-chute and brought into position to arrest atack emerging from the chute by means of a reciprocating slide, whichlatter thereupon moves forward against the tack, releases thechecking-lever, forces the tack into the feed-trough, and closes the endof the chute until the tack in the feed-trough has been positioned andset, and then reverses to permit the escape of another tack from thechute and its arrest by the checking-lever, as I will proceed now toexplain and finally claim.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating the invention, in the severalfigures of which like parts are similarly designated, Figure 1 is a sideelevation and partial section of enough of a power machine for set tingtack-fastened buttons to illustrate the invention. Fig. 2 is ahorizontal section showing the attachment of-this invention in planview. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the attachment with the coverplate removed to one side. Fig. & is a perspective view of amodification. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of another modification. Fig.6 is a perspective view of the reciprocating slide.

Before proceeding with a detail description of the drawings, it is to benoted. that the invention is not limited to any particular constructionof button setting machine, excepting that it is primarily adapted forone in which a feed-trough receives the tacks one by one and positionsthem beneath the button in a line with the button setting machine.

While this invention is designed primarily for use in machines forsetting tackfastened buttons, it is to be understood that it isapplicable also to machines usingother fasteners than tacks, such asrivets and the like, and consequently it is to be understood that theinvention as claimed is not limited to the feeding of tacks.

1 is a standard or frame, provided with a rotary tack-hopper 2, fromwhich extends the chute or raceway 3 to the point of delivery of thetacks to the setting mechanism.

The button feeding and delivery mechanism may be of any approvedconstruction, such for example as that shown in the patent referred to.

The tack-positioning mechanism may consist of a feed-trough 4% at theend of which are the spring fingers 5, to which the tack is transferredand by which it is held during the act of setting, such transfer beingeffected by an ejector 6, which is reciprocated in any suitable manner,as by a bell-crank mechanism 7 operated by a cam 8 on the cam shaft 9.The feed-trough and the delivery end of the chute or raceway arearranged alongside and parallel to one another.

A lateral opening 10 is made in this feedtrough at the deliveryend ofthe chute 3, and this lateral opening extends from a block 11 on whichthe parts of the attachment of this invention are supported. A recess orslot 12 is made in this block in which is pivoted substantiallyequidistant from its 'crank lever 21 pivoted at 22 to the block, its

other armhaving a pin 23 which is connected by a link 23 with a lever 24one end of which is in roller contact with a cam 25 on the cam shaft 9,and its other end connected with a spring 26 fastened to some stationarypart of the machine so as to press thelower end of the lever intooperative contact with the cam and to insure the reciprocation of theleV ver 24 and the slide 16. The relation of the slide and thechecking-lever is such that in its forward movement the slide willengage the tack at that time held by the finger 14: of thechecking-lever and move the tack through the opening 10 into thefeed-trough 1 to be acted upon by the ejector 6, and in so doing. theslide will disengage the finger 15 of the checking-lever thus freeingthe way for the movement of the tack. In this forwardmovement of theslide 16 it closes the discharge end of the chute, as shown in Fig.

5, so as to arrest the escape of the tacks from the chute. Upon thereturn movement of the slide, its rear end will come into contact withthe finger 15 and thereby rock the lever on its pivot and throw thefinger 14 toward the delivery end of the chute and arrest another tack,the slide meanwhile positively holding V the checking-lever in thisposition until in its next forward movement it frees the finger 15 andcloses the delivery end of the chute.

By this means the use of a cut-off or escapement such as hitherto usualon tack chutes, is dispensed with, and in its stead a positively-actingmechanism is supplied which avoids clogging of tacks and escape of morethan one tack at a time, and the single tack that does escape ispositively held until delivered to the feed-trough and the i ejector,and means to transfer the fasteners ejector therein.

Various means may be employed for positioning the checking-lever and theslide, and

we havesho'wn only one convenient means. As illustrated in detailin Fig.3, the block 11 is cut down, slotted, or recessed to receivethe'checking-lever' and the slide, and these parts are then inclosed bymeans of a plate 27 screwed down over the checking-lever and the flange17, in such way as to permit freedom 'of movement of these parts.

Instead of providing a checking-lever 1 whose'forwardfinger'l'etoperates on the head of a tack, we may provide a checking-leverwith'said finger elevated so as .to act upon within the scope of theclaims.

and this modification is shown in Fig.7 1, wherein the tack engaging end28' of the leveris elevated above the slide engaging end 29, butotherwise the construction and operation are thesame.

It will be noted that in the construction heretofore described, nosprings are used on the attachment. V i I In another modification, shownin Fig. 5, the checking-lever 30 has but one arm and that a forward arm,whichengages the tack, and this arm may be arranged as shown to engagethe shank of the tack, or it may be arranged to engage the head of thetack, as

desired; and insteadofoperatingthis lever V by the movement of the slideto throw it into tack-arresting position, it may be operated by a spring31. V V

The described and other variations of the principle of the invention arepermissible What we claim is: j

1. In a fastener-feeding mechanism for button setting machines, afastener chute or raceway, a fastener-positioning mechanism located atthe delivery end of such chute or raceway and comprising a feed trough,a reciprocating ejector therein, and a holder to which the fastener isdelivered bynthe ejector, and means to transfer the fasteners one by onefrom'such delivery end tothe fastener-positioning mechanism, samecomprising a checking-lever to arrest the fastener escaping from suchdelivery end and a reciprocating slide arranged crosswise of suchdelivery end and adapted to act upon the checking-lever to release thearrested fastener: from the checking-lever and transfer it to thefastenenpositioning mechanism, and also to close such delivery endagainst the escape of otherfasteners for the time being. l I

2. In a fastenenfeeding 'mechanism for button setting machines, afastener chute or raceway, a' fastener positioningmechanism located atthe delivery end of such chute or raceway and comprising a feedtrough, areciprocating ejector therein, and a holder to' which the fastener isdelivered by the one by one from such delivery end tothe Vfastener-positioning mechanlsm, same comprising a checking-lever havinga laterally projecting beveled finger arranged opposite such deliveryend-and adapted to arrest a fastener escapingfrom such end, and a reciprocating: slide arranged between said delivery end and the finger andadapted to engage the checking-lever and the fastener "arrested therebyand to releasev such fastener and transfer it tojthe fastener-posi- Ofother fasteners.

3. In a fastener feeding mechanism for button setting machines, afastener chute or raceway, a fastener positioning mechanism located atthe delivery end of such chute or raceway, and means to transfer thefasteners one by one from such delivery end to the fastener positioningmechanism, same comprising a checking-lever having laterally projectingfingers at its opposite ends, one of which projects toward the deliveryend to arrest a fastener, and a reciprocating slide arranged crosswiseof said delivery end and in the path of movement of the projectingfingers of the checking lever and adapted to contact with the saidfingers to hold the lever in given position, and in its forward movementto release the lever and discharge the fastener arrested by the forwardfinger, and in its rearward movement to engage the rearward finger andmove the forward finger into fastener arresting position with relationto the chute or raceway.

4. In a tack feeding mechanism for button setting machines, having atack chute and a tack positioning mechanism located at the delivery endof said chute, and com prising a feed trough, a reciprocating ejectortherein and a tack holder to which the tack is delivered by' theejector, and means arranged adjacent to the delivery end of said chuteto transfer the tacks one by one to the tack positioning mechanism, samecomprising a reciprocating slide arranged crosswise of the delivery'endof the chute to transfer the tacks to the tack positioning mechanism asthey escape one by one from said chute, and a checking-lever extendingtoward the discharge end of the chute to arrest the tacks one by one andpresent them in the path of movement of the slide and 40 adapted to moveaway from the slide as said slide moves to transfer the tacks to thepositioning mechanism.

5. In a tack feeding mechanism for button setting machines, having atack chute, and a tack positioning mechanism located at the delivery endof such chute and paral lel therewith, a tack cut-Off communicating withthe tack positioning mechanism and having a reciprocating slide arrangedtransversely of the chute and adapted to open and close the delivery endof the chute, and a checking-lever arranged alongside of the slide andhaving fingers at its opposite ends extending toward the slide, one ofsuch fingers extending sufficiently close to the delivery end of thechute to arrest an escaping tack and position it in the path of movementof the slide to be acted upon by the slide to transfer it from thecut-off to the tack positioning mechanism, said slide during suchmovement closing the chute against the escape of other tacks, and theother finger adapted to be acted upon by the slide in its reversemovement to move the tack arresting finger of the checking-lever intoposition to arrest an escaping tack when the slide has uncovered theother end of the chute.

In testimony whereof we have hereunto set our hands this 18th day ofOctober, A. D. 1916.

FRANK E. WARNER. WILLIAM T. LEGGETT.

Witnesses:

E. A. HYDE, PERCY WARNER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, .D. G.

